There are a bunch of AAA games coming to PS5 this month, such as Monster Hunter Wilds and Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, but one of the only major titles that’s skipping the platform is Avowed. Developed by Fallout: New Vegas creator Obsidian Entertainment, Avowed is the latest installment in the Pillars of Eternity franchise. After being in development for around six years, this first-person fantasy RPG was released on February 18, exclusively for Xbox Series X/S and Windows PC. Since the game is published by Xbox Game Studios, the fact that it didn’t launch on PS5 on the same day isn’t that surprising.
With that said, Xbox has been porting many of its major AAA exclusives to PlayStation consoles in recent months. Though it is still manufacturing consoles, the company, which was long thought to be the direct competitor of PlayStation, has been restructuring its business to be more of a third-party publisher than a traditional platform holder. Many Microsoft-published Xbox exclusives, such as Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Age of Mythology: Retold, and even Forza Horizon 5 are coming to PlayStation 5 over the next few months. Due to this situation, there’s a decent chance that Avowed may land on PS5 this year, as well. However, there is one potential barrier that could prevent the game from coming to Sony’s home console in 2025.
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Obsidian’s Next Game After Avowed, The Outer Worlds 2, is Coming to PS5 This Year
Obsidian Entertainment is surprisingly releasing not one, but two AAA games this year. The company just shipped Avowed, and it is also planning to launch The Outer Worlds 2 in the near future. Originally announced in 2021, The Outer Worlds 2 is the direct follow-up to the 2019 sci-fi RPG The Outer Worlds. This game, for those who don’t know, is basically like Fallout in space. The Outer Worlds has often been compared to the long-running Bethesda franchise due to its satirical tone and retrofuturistic aesthetic, which The Outer Worlds 2 seems to maintain.
The Outer Worlds 2 was initially revealed for just Xbox Series X/S and Windows PC, but during the Activision-Blizzard trial in 2023, Microsoft Gaming executive Matt Booty said Xbox had not yet decided on whether to make the game an Xbox exclusive. In spite of this, many pundits still assumed that The Outer Worlds 2 would only be available on Microsoft platforms at the time, but that didn’t end up being the case. During the Game Awards 2024, Microsoft announced that The Outer Worlds 2 would be coming to PlayStation 5 on day-one, alongside Xbox Series X/S and Windows PC, making it one of the first Xbox games to launch on a rival platform simultaneously.
Microsoft May Push Back a Potential Avowed PS5 Port if It Clashes With The Outer Worlds 2
Currently, The Outer Worlds 2 is scheduled to be released sometime in 2025. Although there isn’t an exact launch window for it yet, it’s likely that the game will make its debut in the second half of this year, considering Obsidian has just launched Avowed. Microsoft’s overall release schedule for late 2025, Xbox exclusive or otherwise, seems fairly stacked, thanks to upcoming releases like Fable, Call of Duty 2025, and Ninja Gaiden 4. Taking this into account, the company will probably want to give The Outer Worlds 2 ample space between its other games.
If The Outer Worlds 2 does actually come out in late 2025, then it’s likely that Microsoft will not want to release a potential Avowed PS5 port in the same timeframe. Both games target the same demographic, after all, so Microsoft will just be cannibalizing its sales on PlayStation if it launches them so close to each other. There haven’t been any concrete rumors yet about Avowed being in development for PS5, but if a port of the game actually exists and cannot be completed until fall 2025, then Microsoft may push its PlayStation launch to 2026 just to give The Outer Worlds 2 more breathing room.
Welcome to the Living Lands, a mysterious island filled with adventure and danger. Set in the fictional world of Eora that was first introduced to players in the Pillars of Eternity franchise, Avowed is a first-person fantasy action RPG from the award-winning team at Obsidian Entertainment.
You are the envoy of Aedyr, a distant land, sent to investigate rumors of a spreading plague throughout the Living Lands – an island full of mysteries and secrets, danger and adventure, and choices and consequences, and untamed wilderness. You discover a personal connection to the Living Lands and an ancient secret that threatens to destroy everything. Can you save this unknown frontier and your soul from the forces threatening to tear them asunder?
- Released
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February 18, 2025
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Strong Language, Violence
- Publisher(s)
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Xbox Game Studios